AnMed Health family medicine practice receives grant to help fight colorectal cancer in community
September 3, 2020
AnMed Health Williamston Family Medicine practice in Williamston, S.C. has received a grant from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to help increase their colorectal cancer screening rates. The grant is in the amount of $60,000 and will be spread out over five years.
AnMed Health offers various screening tests including fecal immunochemical tests (FIT), FIT-DNA and colonoscopy. However, the tests are often underutilized by patients. AnMed Health Williamston Family Medicine plans to collaborate with the University of South Carolina’s Colorectal Cancer Prevention Network (CCPN) to identify opportunities to improve screening in the community.
“Improving colorectal cancer screening has been a top priority of the physicians at AnMed Health Williamston Family Medicine,” said Dr. Matthew Roehrs, AnMed Health Williamston Family Medicine provider.
Colorectal cancer is one of the most common cancers in the U.S. The direct cost of treating CRC is estimated at $17 billion annually, and approximately 9.8 million workdays are lost annually due to hospitalization.
Screenings for colorectal cancer are offered to people between the ages of 50-75. The screenings can prevent the disease and saves lives. However, in some regions of South Carolina, as many as 90 percent of people who should be screened are not primarily due to cost, availability and lack of awareness. Low screening rates have made colorectal cancer the second leading cause of cancer death in South Carolina, affecting Black and Latino communities the most.
